Alport syndrome (AS) includes a group of hereditary diseases caused by mutations in the COL4A3, COL4A4 or COL4A5 genes. These genes are responsible for the biosynthesis of α3, α4 and α5 collagen IV chains, which are located in the glomerular...
Liberia is a country located on the West African coast bordered by Guinea, Sierra Leone and the Ivory Coast. Founded in 1821, it is Africa’s oldest modern republic and was established on land acquired for freed US slaves by the...
This year marks the centenary of the death of Adam Politzer (1835-1920). He has been described as the Father of Otology [1] and was certainly the most influential person in otology in the latter half of the 19th century [2]....
What is the current evidence for medical management of sudden sensorineural hearing loss? Jessica Choong and Stephen O’Leary present a review of the current evidence of treatments options. Sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL) causes significant distress and, in many cases,...
Prof Valerie Lund caught up with friend and colleague, Prof Dr Metin Önerci, to discuss his various positions in rhinology, the FOAM programme with which he is involved, and rhinology in Turkey and the Balkan and the Central Asian region....
Medical Speech-Language Pathology: A Practitioner’s Guide is an informative and comprehensive guide to differential diagnosis, assessment and management of communication and swallowing disorders in the medical setting, which includes consideration of adult patients from early diagnosis to end of life....
There are many myths around language development in bilingual children, and an increased risk of stuttering in bilingual children is one of these misperceptions. In research studies, speech and language therapists have identified higher numbers of dysfluencies in speech samples...
Patients with tracheostomy require comprehensive care which should begin in the preoperative phase and go through immediate postoperative and discharge phases with patient involvement as well. The authors assessed this with a multicentre, cross-sectional survey using a mailing list held...
Despite the introduction of the Mental Capacity Act in 2005, healthcare professionals remain uncomfortable with individuals who choose not to follow medical advice - who make informed decisions to decline a treatment or management plans. This paper highlights that speech...
Aphasia, a language impairment impacting on a person’s ability to speak, understand, read and write, is most commonly caused by a stroke. Speech and language therapists are trained to work with people with aphasia, often aiming for restitution and rehabilitation...
The authors start this paper by flagging a recent study demonstrating that speech and language therapists in clinical practice rarely have time to focus on emotional issues in relation to aphasia. Yet, people with aphasia describe the close relationship between...
Our population is ageing and, with this, the incidence of frailty is increasing. Frailty is defined as increased vulnerability to stressors resulting in adverse outcomes. Stressors can include communication and swallowing difficulties, yet these are poorly recognised. Management of communication...